Houston came away Saturday night riding high after dismantling the Cincinnati Bengals despite being decimated by injuries. Not bad considering it was their first playoff game in the team’s short history. This week they meet the Baltimore Ravens who they always seem struggle against and even lost to in week 6 earlier this season.

Because of injuries, Houston’s offense is predicated by the run. I doubt there’s a better 1-2 running back combo in the NFL better than Arian Foster and Ben Tate. The ability to run will take pressure off TJ Yates and let him manage the game accordingly. Yates can make plays and has some great weapons in Andre Johnson and Owen Daniels, but Baltimore’s defense is too experienced and talented to let a rookie QB torch them. Defensively, Houston needs to focus on shutting down Ray Rice and make everything go through Joe Flacco. He’s a solid QB, but his numbers in the playoffs are mediocre at best. Houston needs to jump out to a quick lead so they can control the tempo of the game and not let it get out of hand.

Offensively, Baltimore needs to stay as balanced. What made Baltimore so successful week 6 was that everyone on offense was involved so Houston couldn’t key in on one player. Too much Ray Rice and they become predictable and easy to stop. Too much Flacco and he’s bound to make a mistake from too many passes. The tight ends, Pitta and Dickson, should be able to have monster games working over the middle. As far as the defense goes, they need to force turnovers. Even with a rookie QB, Houston found a way to beat Cincinnati by 21 because they played mistake-free football. They also need to collapse the pocket to try and rattle Yates.

Both teams have dominant defenses and offenses that can score. Houston only has 1 playoff game under their belt while Baltimore has been underwhelming the past few years they’ve been in the playoffs. I think the Texans have a shot, but they will have to play mistake-free football and get a few breaks as well. Overall, I think Houston’s injuries and lack of playoff experience spell the end of their 2011 playoff run.

This week marks week 5 in the NFL regular season and that means 3 pro bowl talents have returned to their respective teams effective Monday. Like a kid who just got out of detention, they’re all eager to return and make an impact in the minimum 12 games remaining. Here’s a quick breakdown on how they should fair and how they will impact their current teams.

Santonio Holmes, WR, Jets: Surprisingly the Jets passing attack has been severely improved over the past few games and Mark Sanchez has definitely shown vast improvement despite a rough first week where the Jets offense looked static. Adding a pro bowler like Holmes will do nothing but improve that passing attack and gives Sanchez a much better vertical threat than Braylon Edwards (who’s not a serious deep threat at all). Holmes might get slowly worked into the rotation but it shouldn’t take long for him to assert himself as Sanchez’s go-to receiver. He’s easily the most talented and offers something that the rest of the Jets receivers seem to be lacking: speed.

Predicted Stats: 54 catches, 707 yards receiving, 3 TDs

Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Steelers: Merry Christmas to everyone on Pittsburgh’s offense; your leader is back. While Charlie Batch did an admirable job getting Pittsburgh to a 3-1 record, their defense did a lot of the work and deserves a good amount of credit. The return of Big Ben immediately opens up the offense and makes it a more vertical attack. Rashad Mendenhall will immediately benefit from defenses not being able to stack 8 in the box and Mike Wallace will especially benefit now that he has a QB who likes to go for it all (no pun intended). Roethlisberger does tend to be turnover prone, but he’s much more akin to the big play which benefits the Steelers overall in the long run. Pittsburgh goes from a playoff team to a Super Bowl contender by getting Big Ben back.

Predicted Stats: 2,423 yards passing, 17 TDs, 7 INTs

Brian Cushing, LB, Texans: It’s crazy for most people to think Houston is 3-1 so far this season. It’s even crazier to think that they did this without their all pro linebacker. Cushing’s intensity has been missed and he will immediately start on the strong side moving Zach Diles back over to weak side. His biggest impact will be in the passing game where he can rush the pass and also drop back in coverage. Houston has given up a significant amount of passing yards, but surprisingly a high amount of those are to tight ends and running backs (about 46% of all yards allowed). His presence should help lower these numbers. Cushing is also the most effective linebacker Houston has when it comes to rushing the passer. Houston’s run defense is already 2nd in the NFL so his main benefit will come in the passing game.

This week marks week 5 in the NFL regular season and that means 3 pro bowl talents have returned to their respective teams effective Monday. Like a kid who just got out of detention, they’re all eager to return and make an impact in the minimum 12 games remaining. Here’s a quick breakdown on how they should fair and how they will impact their current teams.

Santonio Holmes, WR, Jets: Surprisingly the Jets passing attack has been severely improved over the past few games and Mark Sanchez has definitely shown vast improvement despite a rough first week where the Jets offense looked static. Adding a pro bowler like Holmes will do nothing but improve that passing attack and gives Sanchez a much better vertical threat than Braylon Edwards (who’s not a serious deep threat at all). Holmes might get slowly worked into the rotation but it shouldn’t take long for him to assert himself as Sanchez’s go-to receiver. He’s easily the most talented and offers something that the rest of the Jets receivers seem to be lacking: speed.

Predicted Stats: 54 catches, 707 yards receiving, 3 TDs

Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Steelers: Merry Christmas to everyone on Pittsburgh’s offense; your leader is back. While Charlie Batch did an admirable job getting Pittsburgh to a 3-1 record, their defense did a lot of the work and deserves a good amount of credit. The return of Big Ben immediately opens up the offense and makes it a more vertical attack. Rashad Mendenhall will immediately benefit from defenses not being able to stack 8 in the box and Mike Wallace will especially benefit now that he has a QB who likes to go for it all (no pun intended). Roethlisberger does tend to be turnover prone, but he’s much more akin to the big play which benefits the Steelers overall in the long run. Pittsburgh goes from a playoff team to a Super Bowl contender by getting Big Ben back.

Predicted Stats: 2,423 yards passing, 17 TDs, 7 INTs

Brian Cushing, LB, Texans: It’s crazy for most people to think Houston is 3-1 so far this season. It’s even crazier to think that they did this without their all pro linebacker. Cushing’s intensity has been missed and he will immediately start on the strong side moving Zach Diles back over to weak side. His biggest impact will be in the passing game where he can rush the pass and also drop back in coverage. Houston has given up a significant amount of passing yards, but surprisingly a high amount of those are to tight ends and running backs (about 46% of all yards allowed). His presence should help lower these numbers. Cushing is also the most effective linebacker Houston has when it comes to rushing the passer. Houston’s run defense is already 2nd in the NFL so his main benefit will come in the passing game.

Overtrained Athlete Syndrome? Hmm that’s a new excuse I have never heard of. If he really has this so called “Overtrained Athlete Syndrome” how come it hasn’t show up in other athletes? Cushing is cracking me up here with this so called syndrome. I have heard of the excuse “the dog ate my homework” but this one is just out there. Roger Goodell is probably laughing his ass off and not going to nudge on the four game suspension. Roger Clemens gets indicted now Cushing is making up excuses. Houston we have a problem.

The NBA has a D league as well as Europe where they can stash talent not ready for the NBA. The MLB has countless farm leagues and minor leagues used for this purpose. Even Hockey has other leagues like the CHL and IHL. So why doesn’t the biggest sport in the United States have one?

There have been several attempts in the past, but nothing has been very direct. From 1991 – 2007 the NFL had NFL Europe, a subsidiary where NFL teams would send a certain number of players overseas to play and gather starting experience. They were joined by various other international players from other countries trying to find a route to the NFL. NFL Europe had mixed results; it turned out to be a launching point for some future NFL stars like Jake Delhomme and Kurt Warner, but attendance never peaked and NFL fans didn’t seem to enjoy it (correction: they were completely bored by it). Not only that, since players and teams were with each other for only a month or two, there was never any chemistry and teams ran mundane plays. Countries were completely committed and several teams folded before various seasons. Soccer was and still is king in Europe so NFL Europe was more of a side act to them.

The NFL also came up with the idea of the practice squad which is basically an 8 player scout team. These 8 players get to practice with the team and can be signed to the active roster at any time (as well as any other teams without penalty) during the season. In essence, it’s similar to a scout team but with much fewer players; its main intent is for college players to get experience at the NFL level who could use the time to develop into solid players. This system has had some success, most notably 2008 Super Bowl MVP James Harrison. At worst, it makes it easier for NFL teams to accommodate for injuries by having players readily available who are familiar with the team’s playbook. However, the main problem is all they get to do is practice. The only time they get game experience is during the pre-season if they make it that far along in the process and even then it’s against backups fighting for roster spots like themselves.

Outside of the NFL, there are currently 3 alternate football leagues: Arena Football, the UFL, and Canadian football. Arena Football has been around for some time and hasn’t yielded any results in players transitioning to the NFL. It’s too different from the NFL and the shorter field doesn’t help at all. As far as the UFL, it’s hard to see what the future holds. So far the theme of the UFL seems to be “the stars of yesterday” as older players who still feel like playing have been dominating the league as well as has beens. They just had their initial season this following year, but didn’t seem to attract too many viewers or fans. They claim it’s because last year was a “test run”, but it’s hard to see if this is a legitimate reason or not. It’s not sanctioned or under the NFL so it’s trying to stand alone. It’s yet to be seen if the league can grow and be sustainable over the long run. They’re entering their second season and have added another team and are up to 5. After those 2 leagues, there’s really nothing out there other than some random semi-pro leagues scattered throughout the country. As for the CFL, the differences in their rules and style of play are just as great as the AFLs. A longer field, 12 players on the field at a time, and only 3 downs highlight some of the major differences. Rarely do CFL players come to fame in the NFL, but a few have like Doug Flutie and Warren Moon. Not too many players have successfully made the transition recently.

I <3 the practice squad!

So why isn’t there a developmental league like in the other sports? I’ve got a few theories. For one, an NFL season is short. It spans 4 months and is only 16 games while the MLB and NBA are at least 1 month longer and have a ton more games played. For the NFL, there just isn’t enough time. If any gains are to be made, it’s most likely in the off season workouts. The other issue at hand is how would they create teams? Each team could have 8-10 players to contribute to making a team, but how would teams be decided? For that matter, would the teams work together and try not to gain the upper hand (I’m looking at you Belichick). Quite possibly the biggest question is would this put players at a disadvantage? While practice squad players don’t get game experience, they get to learn the play book and see what it takes to be successful. If they had a D League, they would get game experience but not know the plays or what was required by the NFL. Lastly, would the NFL-D be a sustainable asset from a business standpoint? In other words, would it make money and draw fans? They could use it to test markets like San Antonio and Los Angeles to see if they were ready for an NFL team, but would fans really care during the regular season?

I hate to admit it, but the UFL is possibly the best alternate right now outside of NFL expansion. They operate as a separate entity which gives them more freedom to make their league more distinguishable instead of having to identify themselves as a developmental league. They also have their games at the right times as they range from Wednesday to Saturday. It’s too early to tell, but it could be a viable option in the future. With the UFL starting to have league drafts, it has the opportunity to grow. However, the ultimate answer to the overflux of NFL talent would be to add a team to each conference. There are several deserving markets (San Antonio and Los Angeles) and with how much talent is laying around, they could easily add 2 teams. What’s everyone else think is the answer to the current issue with no developmental league?

Well the Brian Cushing/performance enhancing drugs story has become more interesting as the Associated Press has decided to re-vote on the 2009 Defensive Rookie of the Year award because of Cushing’s positive test during the 209 season. Adam Schefter has reported that some voters have come out and said they would re-vote for Cushing again while other like SI’s Peter King are taking a hard line and refusing to vote for him. After Shawne Merriman failed a steroid test in the 2006 offseason, the NFL came up with what would be titled the “Merriman Rule”. In essence, the NFL wanted a way to punish players that tested positive for steroids/PEDs and also won awards. This was in response to Merriman winning DROY in 2005 and this is the first notable time that there has been a re-vote.

As for Cushing’s positive test, there has been a lot of talk that the positive test was for human chorionic gonadotropin, or hCG. It’s the same stuff that Manny Ramirez was busted for and is commonly used by body builders to restart their body’s normal testosterone cycle. The positive test happened in September, but that was the only test. According to ESPN, Cushing’s positive test for hCG would have registered as a negative test last year because the levels weren’t that high. Not only that, but he never tested positive after that positive test following numerous random tests. To top it off, according to webMD, hCG can be found in something as simple as an Ambien.

I think what the AP Press is doing is noble because so many are split on this. Some will feel it doesn’t matter while others see the word “CHEATER” in big red letters on his forehead. Personally, I don’t think he should lose the award so quickly. There are too many variables out there and too many loose ends to rightfully give the award to someone else. If it was a positive test for steroids and was a black and white issue, by all means give the award to someone else. Jairus Byrd definitely had a good season, as did Brian Orakpo and Clay Matthews. However, Cushing had one of the best seasons of any 4-3 OLB last season and I don’t think enough people can convince themselves that his play last season was directly related to this positive test. Cushing had the most INTs and passes defended of any LB last season, regardless of rookie or vet. What he tested for didn’t give him the ability to read Peyton Manning’s eyes and make plays on passes. The fact that his positive test showed a non-steroidal result can only further his cause for re-winning the Defensive Rookie of the Year award.

For kicks, I asked the other bloggers who they think should win the DROY award after all this. Here’s how everyone voted.

Lork: Brian Cushing (shouldn’t be a surprise)

Murph: Brian Cushing

Frost: Jairus Byrd

J-Gome: N/A (apparently he doesn’t know how to respond to a simple e-mail)